Whispers in the Dark
by SheeWolf85
Summary: Erik is dead. Or is he? Christine receives a mysterious package with no return address. Could it mean he’s still alive? Oneshot.


A/N: This came to me over a period of about four hours and I've done a bit of touch-up work on it, but what you're reading is a result of too much radio and one very active imagination. It also tells a different version of the ending. Let me know what you think. By the way, the song I have used is called 'Whispers in the Dark' by a band called Skillet. I do not own the song, the band or anything even close to them. I also own nothing of Phantom. Drat. Oh, and one more thing. The ceremony used in here is not a real ceremony. It is one that I made up to suit my story. Don't get mad at me. Okay, now read it and let me know what you think – please.

* * *

**Whispers in the Dark**

_C_hristine sat on the bench in the garden at Raoul's Beauvais château, thinking and gazing up at the stars. She had managed to get out of the house without raising attention; she needed to think and the confines of her room were not allowing her to do so. She looked at the stars and saw a familiar pattern. Erik had taught her about astrology and how to identify some constellations and now she found herself tracing the outline of Orion with her finger, the way Erik had done for her so many months ago. She loved how the stars twinkled. They looked so close, and yet so far away at the same time. Erik had told her that the only star remotely close to them was the sun. She was surprised to find that the sun was indeed a star. Erik had told her that the stars had helped to solve some of the world's most ancient puzzles, that they offered clarity and even, if you read them right, a glimpse into the future. Even so, as Christine looked up at them, she only felt more confused.

_When darkness comes I'll light the night with stars._

She finished tracing Orion and shook her head. In all the time that she had been with Erik, he had never hurt her, never made fun of her the way everybody else did. He never even touched her. At least not until the last little bit. She knew now it was because he loved her. He loved her with all his heart and soul and she had betrayed him in the cruelest way possible. What made it worse was that, at the time, she didn't know she was betraying him. She knew she was disobeying orders, but she didn't understand exactly how she was hurting him. When Raoul had shown up, she still believed Erik to be her Angel of Music; she didn't know he was a real man. By the time she learned that he was real, the events had already been put into motion. Raoul would not allow her to ignore him and Erik would not allow her to forget him.

Even though the whole ordeal was over and done with – had been for nearly three weeks now – she knew she would never be able to forget Erik. He had left a permanent impact on her heart and soul.

She took a deep breath of the cool night air and looked down at the papers on her lap. Her eyes grazed over the first verse again and she looked at the rose lying beside her. Did this mean he was still alive? She had watched him fall, but neither she nor Raoul had gone to see if he was really dead.

It was after her last performance at the Opéra Populaire. She had done what Erik had asked and played her part perfectly in the opera he swore he wrote for her to further her career. To her, it seemed as if it would destroy her career. The part was, admittedly, crafted perfectly for her voice and the part offered the bodily freedom she had once said she wanted. Now that it was given to her, she knew she really didn't want it after all. She wanted the modest, safe roles of the past.

**_After performing, Christine ran to her dressing room to change as quickly as possible and was about to run out the door to meet Raoul. They had agreed that Christine was not to go back to Erik even to give him an answer. He had asked her to marry him, but didn't want an answer right away. He wanted her to perform and think it over, then come back to him and tell him yes or no. She promised she would do as he asked, but then Raoul had convinced her otherwise. She had just reached the door handle when she felt a deathly cold hand on her arm. She spun to see Erik staring at her with fire in his yellow eyes. He knew about her plans and he was furious. She tried to jerk away from him, but his hold on her tightened to an almost crushing force and he pulled her to him. She cried out in pain._**

"_**You didn't think you could get away from me that easily, did you?" He picked her up and carried her through the mirror to the tunnels that led to his underground home, closing the portal behind him.**_

"_**No, Erik! You don't understand. Please!" She didn't know why she was begging him; she knew no matter what, she was going with him tonight, not Raoul.**_

**_He stopped suddenly and all but threw her to the ground. "What don't I understand, _mademoiselle_?" He said the last word as though she really didn't deserve the title. "Do I not understand that you intended to break your promise to me – AGAIN? Do I not understand that you were going to run off with that boy and leave me in my home to wonder what happened to you? You were going to let me stay down there and wait for you when you knew – _you knew_ – that you would not be coming to even give me an answer! So please, Christine, tell me what I don't understand." He crossed his arms over his chest and looked at her with a dangerous light in his eyes._**

_**Christine looked up at him and felt the tears start. He was furious and he had every right to be. She knew she had made a mistake by listening to Raoul, but she just wanted this whole situation taken out of her hands.**_

"_**I'm sorry." She whispered. "I'm sorry, Erik. I swear to you that I never meant to hurt you." **_

_**He just laughed and grabbed her arm, wrenching her to a standing position. "You are one hell of an actress, Christine. You almost had me believing you."**_

_**He dragged her down to his lair where he took her to her room. "You'll find everything you need for our wedding in here." Then he walked out and closed the door behind him.**_

_**Christine was mortified. Their wedding? She turned and looked around the room. On her bed lay the most beautiful white wedding gown she had ever seen. On the floor next to the bed were matching white slippers. She slipped herself into the wedding gown and struggled with the fastening. There were an ungodly amount of tiny buttons that ran up the back of the dress and she was certain she would never be able to do them by herself. On the other hand, she was more than terrified to ask Erik to help her. Somehow she felt she would not end up in the dress if she asked for his help. She did up the buttons that she could and slipped into the shoes. She sat at her vanity and brushed her hair, trying to think of something to make Erik come back to his senses. She started thinking about how this whole mess had started and about all the mistakes she had made along the way.**_

_**She came back to reality when she heard a knock on the door. She turned just as the door opened and saw Erik come into her room in full groom attire. She had seen him in the traditional suits, but never in an actual tuxedo. He looked… handsome. She stood up and found herself blushing.**_

"_**Come; it's time." He grabbed her arm none too gently and started walking out of the room. As they reached the door, he grabbed a veil that lay just outside her room on a hook and placed it on her head. HE pushed her ahead of him. "You missed a few buttons back here." He said scornfully as he stopped her and began doing them up.**_

"_**I couldn't reach them." She said quietly.**_

"_**When are you going to learn that you can come to me for anything?" He finished doing them up and pushed her once again in the direction of his room.**_

_**Just before he opened the door to push her inside, the alarm signaled someone's arrival. Christine jumped at the unexpected sound and Erik laughed.**_

"_**I just hate late arrivals, don't you?" He kissed the top of her head and turned to see Raoul emerging from the lake and push himself up to the portcullis.**_

_**Christine caught a glimpse of him and panicked. "Raoul!" She screamed. She tried to run to him, but Erik caught her and chuckled.**_

"_**You should know better by now, my dear. You cannot get past me." He put her back where she was.**_

"_**Christine!" Raoul called. "Let her go!" He tried in vain to lift the portcullis to get to her.**_

"_**And if I refuse?" Erik asked sarcastically.**_

"_**Let me in! Let me see her, please. Christine, my love, it will be okay." He tried to comfort her, but it was useless at this distance.**_

"_**I suppose we do need at least one witness." He walked over to the lever that lifted the portcullis and moved it just enough to let the boy in, but he'd have to get down on his knees and crawl.**_

_**Christine felt sick as she watched Raoul crawling into Erik's home. Here, Erik had complete and total reign and nothing was as it was in the real world. Somehow she knew one of them was going to die tonight.**_

_**As Raoul moved to Christine, Erik picked something out of his pocket and moved closer to them. Raoul just reached Christine and pulled her into a strong hug when he felt something slip around his neck.**_

_**Christine watched in horror as Raoul was jerked away from her with a very thin piece of what looked like rope around his neck. The end of the rope was in Erik's hands.**_

"_**This, my dear boy, is called a Punjab lasso." Erik said as he secured the end of it tightly. "If you make one wrong move, it will kill you. Now, you will watch your woman marry another. Come, Christine." He pulled her into his room and grabbed a few papers and took her back out. Christine noticed Raoul looked slightly relieved to see her coming back out of the room so quickly.**_

_**Erik handed her the papers. "We are doing an untraditional pagan ceremony, so here are the papers to make it legal to the rest of the world. Just sign this here." He handed her the pen and watched her look at Raoul for a moment before shaking her head and signing the papers. She was so confused. She knew she did not want to marry either man. She wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out. She handed the papers back to Erik and saw a smile crawl across his face. "Perfect. Now, come stand over here." He put here where he wanted her to be and turned back to Raoul. "Now watch this closely, boy. You may learn something."**_

_**He turned back to Christine and said something in a language she did not recognize. He picked up a small goblet from the table and took a drink, then handed it to Christine. "This is wine, Christine. By taking a drink, you signify that you are in acceptance of this union."**_

_**She looked at him uncertainly, then over at Raoul. She closed her eyes and drank. She heard Raoul make a noise and opened her eyes again. Erik took the goblet and said to Raoul without even glancing in his direction, "Remember, one wrong move and you're dead." He set the goblet down and turned back to Christine. "Now you just kiss me and we are married."**_

"_**No!" Christine heard Raoul cry out. "Christine, please, don't do this. My life is not worth your unhappiness."**_

"_**Shut up." Erik sounded irritated. Christine looked up at Erik's face and realized for the first time that he had not yet removed his mask. She looked back over at Raoul and started to cry again.**_

"_**Why are you doing this, Erik?" She asked. "Why are you being so cruel?"**_

_**Erik laughed. "Cruel?" He asked bitterly. "Cruelty, Christine, is your expertise. I am just asking you to marry me." He took hold of her arm and positioned her so she was facing Raoul. "Make your choice now. Choose me and your lover goes free. Choose him, and he dies. Which way will it be?" He walked over to Raoul and tugged on the rope to make his point. Raoul's head jerked up and he gasped for air before Erik let it slacken a little.**_

"_**Erik, this is insanity!" She yelled. She was absolutely terrified. She could not choose Raoul or he would die, but she couldn't choose Erik and spend her life underground.**_

"_**Do not call me insane, Christine." He said with a warning. "Now make your choice."**_

"_**Christine, please. Go free; be happy. Don't do this for me!" Raoul begged.**_

"_**Erik, I can't do this. Please don't make me do this." She was crying hard now with the realization that both Raoul's and Erik's life lie at her feet. All it would take is one word either way and either Erik's or Raoul's life would be crushed.**_

"_**If you don't make your choice, Christine, he will die. You have ten seconds." He took hold of the rope and prepared to tug hard.**_

"_**Erik, no!" Christine's mind reeled and everything started to get fuzzy. "Please!"**_

"_**Christine, go free." Raoul cried.**_

"_**You have five seconds." Erik said calmly, and then tightened his grip on the rope.**_

"_**No…" Christine ran forward and grabbed Erik's mask, flinging it off and then pulled his face to hers, kissing him full on the lips.**_

**_Erik faltered when she did that. He honestly expected to have to kill the boy and set her free. His hands dropped the rope and he made a surprised noise._**

**_Christine pulled back from the kiss for only a moment before kissing him again. Erik wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him. When it ended this time, Christine was not sure if the tears she tasted were hers or Erik's._**

**_It seemed an eternity before anybody did anything. Raoul coughed and struggled a little bit, then stopped when it just made the rope tighter on his neck._**

**_Christine almost jumped when Erik moved. He turned to Raoul and saw the repulsion on his face as he beheld Erik's malformed features for the first time. Erik wanted to be angry, but he just couldn't. He loosened the rope, and then took it off of his victim entirely. He turned back to Christine._**

_"**Go." He said quietly. He put his hands on her shoulders gently and kissed her forehead. "Go with him. Please forgive me." He turned and started making his way back to his bedroom.**_

**_Raoul ran over to Christine and pulled her into his arms. She tried to push him away and go to Erik, but he wouldn't move._**

_"**Erik?" She called.**_

**_He turned and looked at them sadly. "Go." He said again, then address Raoul. "Treat her well." It seemed almost a threat before he turned back._**

**_Raoul finally managed to get Christine to follow him. "Don't worry," he said softly, "he won't ever hurt you again."_**

**_Erik heard that and turned just in time to see Raoul draw his small deringer and align the sights to his chest._**

_"**No!" Christine screamed. Her cry was lost as the room exploded with sound. She saw Erik fall to the ground and she tried so hard to get to him, screaming his name and for Raoul to let her go.**_

_"**Come on, Christine. We must leave now." He had to practically drag her to get her to move in the direction he wanted.**_

**_After they were finally back in the light, Raoul took advantage of Christine's attire. He took them to a church where he had a priest perform an abrupt wedding and file the proper paperwork. She wasn't sure now if anything was real or not. It all seemed like a horrible dream and she hardly even registered the moment she said, "I do."_**

Christine wiped the tears from her eyes. She looked down at the papers on her lap once again.

_Despite the lies that you're making_

_Your love is mine for the taking._

_My love is_

_Just waiting_

_To turn your tears to roses._

She had received the package earlier that day and wondered who would be sending her anything at Raoul's address since nobody knew she was there. Or at least she didn't think anyone knew. It had no return address and the boy who had delivered it didn't seem to remember who had given it to him to deliver. She opened the package to reveal a box with a rose and an envelope inside. The rose was still fresh and she wondered when the package had been sent. She opened the envelope to reveal a few sheets of music and an official looking document. The official document was one of the copies of the marriage license she had signed in Erik's home. She started crying when she saw that. She grazed over the music and prayed to god that he was here to save her. Raoul treated her like a queen, but she really didn't want to be here.

Now she looked up at the stars again and found another constellation. She traced the Big Dipper; also known as Ursa Major and remembered the story Erik had told her about it.

_I will be the one that's going to hold you._

_I will be the one that you run to._

_My love is_

_A burning_

_Consuming fire._

She looked back down at the rose and picked it up. She brought it to her nose and inhaled. Erik's home had smelled like roses. Roses, fire, water, and incense. It was the oddest combination, but it always smelled so comforting to her. She closed her eyes and tried to remember the good times she'd had with Erik. As of late, the only thing she could remember about Erik was watching him fall.

_No!_

_You'll never be alone!_

_When darkness comes I'll light the night with stars._

_Hear my whispers in the dark._

She listened intently for a moment, but all she could hear was the gurgling of the creek about thirty yards to her left, the crickets singing and every so often, the soft hoot of an owl. She shook her head, wondering what she thought she might hear.

_No!_

_You'll never be alone!_

_When darkness comes you know I'm never far._

_Hear my whispers in the dark._

She stood up slowly and stretched her legs. She had been out here now for over thirty minutes and she was starting to get cold. Instead of going in, however, she thought she'd rather take a short walk. She started toward the creek.

_You feel so lonely and ragged._

_You lay there broken and naked._

_My love is_

_Just waiting_

_To clothe you in crimson roses._

She reached the creek and shivered. It seemed a lot colder by the water. She sat down on the damp grass and watched the water dance in the moonlight. It reminded her of the water on Erik's lake moving beneath his boat as he rowed her across it. She had always loved watching the water in the lamplight.

_I will be the one that's gonna find you._

_I will be the one that's gonna guide you._

_My love is_

_A burning_

_Consuming fire._

She looked up when she saw a movement in the bushes on the other side of the creek,

"Hello?" She called, quietly at first. Whatever it was moved again.

"Hello? Who's there?" She said, louder this time.

She felt a surge of fear and hope that it might be Erik. She stood up and started to look for a way across the creek when the culprit revealed itself as a large raccoon. She smiled at it and watched it disappear again. She felt surprisingly disappointed and she started walking back toward the château again.

_No!_

_You'll never be alone!_

_When darkness comes I'll light the night with stars._

_Hear my whispers in the dark._

She heard another rustle and smiled. The raccoons were so cute, she thought. The wind started to blow a little harder than it had been and brought with it the scent of roses, fire, water and incense. Her head snapped up when she smelled it and she looked around. Another gust of wind. She stopped walking and inhaled the scent she had learned to love so much. She looked around and still saw nothing. She heard nothing more that the sounds she'd been hearing since she'd snuck out.

_No!_

_You'll never be alone!_

_When darkness comes you know I'm never far._

_Hear my whispers in the dark._

She started walking again and reached the bench, picking up her papers she had weighted down with the rose. She looked at the marriage license and smiled. Technically, she had married Erik first. She walked back to the door to go inside again when another gust of wind hit her. This one, however, carried a whisper with it.

"Christine."

She gasped and threw her head up, turning to see who had said that. She saw nothing. She moved back toward the bench and looked around. She knew Erik could hide from the best of bloodhounds, she didn't know why she thought she could see him if he didn't want to be seen. She felt fresh tears sting her eyes and walked back into the house.

She snuck into her room and crawled into bed.

Raoul stirred only slightly when he felt the bed move. Christine breathed a sigh of relief when he didn't wake. She lay there awake for a long time before she finally felt herself start to drift off.

She would never be able to say if it was her mind being in that state between awake and asleep that had imagined it, or if he was really there, but just before her eyes closed, she swore she saw Erik's mask glimmer for a second in the moonlight. She smiled as she let out a breath and fell asleep.

* * *

A/N: For those of you who are following my story 'The Finer Points of Obsession', I truly apologize for the lack of updates. I have had serious writer's block, but I think I've finally figured out my problem. Hopefully soon I will have an update for you.

Anyway, tell me what you think of this little story here. I would love your input.

Your humble authoress.


End file.
